It's Time For You To Fly
by XxAccioNevilleLongbottomxX
Summary: She was heading to fame, they were destined to fade. Slightly AU
1. Chapter 1

There has always has been must haves for Rachel Barbra Berry, but what had mattered most to her at this very moment was the love of her life, Finn Christopher Hudson. Rachel loved him with all of her heart but she had made a mistake, that to him was unforgivable. Finn had broken up with her for kissing Puck while they were together but it didn't feel like that to her.

Honestly, Rachel thought they were done. She was so _unbelievably_ angry he had slept with Santana and didn't tell her. She was so _unbelievably_ angry that he now wanted Quinn. And finally she was so _unbelievably_ angry because he was a hypocrite for kissing a girl who was already taken.

But even through his faults, She still _unbelievably_ wanted him, so Rachel Barbra Berry was in for change and Santana and Brittany had decided to help her.

Rachel _wasn't_ an idiot. Santana only probably decided to help because she felt guilty and needed the feeling to go away and Brittany was only there to help her most likely because she followed Santana at every turn.

"Seriously Berry. You need to stop thinking I'm only helping you to get rid of guilt." said Santana as the trio descended the hallway, everybody's eyes on them. Rachel knew it was because 2 of the most popular girls in school were walking down the hallway with a Lima Loser.

"I wasn't thinking that, Santana," Rachel replied in a whisper as she only did when she was lying.

"Oh come on Berry, you think I don't know you by now? And I'm helping you so I get this whole _'why doesn't Finn love me anymore' _fiasco to cease and desist," Santana said dramatically before laughing as they group turned the corner towards the gym. "And I'm sick and tired of Quinn and all of her bullshit. That girl has everything and still wants more. So by helping you Berry, I can go all Lima Heights on Quinn without her even suspecting."

Brittany who had been trying to count the fingers on her hands while the other two had been talking stopped causing Rachel and Santana to walk straight into her, looked up and smiled brightly. "And we have arrived at our destination!"

"Why are we at Coach Sue's office," asked Rachel

"Because," Santana said, dragging out the word "You are joining the cheerios."

"Oh come on Santana, I can't join the cheerios! Quinn would skin me alive and what makes you even say that Coach Sylvester would even let me join, I'm a Lima Loser!" screeched Rachel

"Rach, first of all, I would like to commend you on your voiceability. A screech that high must have taken a long time to practice and that is one thing you need to have on the cheerios, a voice. And two, how many years of dance do you have under your belt? 15 years is what everyone on the team has combined and plus what chances do you have of getting preggers so you will already by Coach's favorite."

"Who is going to be my favorite," came a voice on the other side of the door.

Rachel knew she was done in. She knew there was one thing that would keep her from making the team, let alone staying on the team; New Directions.

"Rachel will be, Coach," said Brittany before she became very interested in the shape and size of the new flat screen tv in the office in front of the three, and now four.

"Who is this _Rachel_?" asked Coach before following Brittany into her office, and taking a seat in her chair that made her feel like she was queen of the school. And with the power she did have over the school, someone needed to get her a crown.

All Rachel could think about was how much success Coach Sue had. She looked at the countless trophies and banners and ribbons that were placed around the room and Rachel knew then thats where she wanted to be. From the beginning, all Rachel wanted was to win, she wanted to be the best she could be and she knew that she could learn a lot from Coach Sue.

"I am," Rachel said, suddenly confident "And I would like to join the cheerios."

"_You_ would like to join _my_ cheerios." Sue laughed before she choked from the laughing, which she covered up by looking out into the distance. "Why should I let you on my cheerios."

"Because we need something new if we're going to win Nationals again this year and Rachels what we need," said Santana before taking a chair in front of the Coach, and pulling Rachel down beside her.

Rachel wondered why Santana was going through all this trouble. It couldn't just be because she wanted to take down Quinn, she didn't need Rachel for that.

"What does she have that I don't already have."

"You need a new flyer, and Rachel is literally the smallest junior in the history of this school and that's saying something considering everyone starves themselves," said Santana.

"She has a great voice," added Brittany

"And," continued Santana, smiling "She has 15 years of dancing experience, a dance prodigy basically, and she can pick up all the slack Quinn has dropped since she joined Glee Club."

Sue pursed her lips. Rachel thought it was because she was thinking of all the advantages the Cheerios would have with her on the team and Coach Sue liked nothing more than to have an advantage.

"You're the captain of the glee club aren't you?" Coach questioned

"Yes," said Rachel, losing her confidence as fast as it had come.

"Why do you want to join the cheerios?"

Rachel was quiet for a moment, before meeting Coach's eyes. "I don't feel like Glee is my home anymore. At first it made me special to be apart of something that was special but all it is, is a group of people who use me for my talent and don't appreciate me or my opinions at all."

"Santana and Brittany, you vouch for her?"

"Yes," both girls replied.

"Well then," said Coach just after she turned to look at Rachel, "Welcome to the team."

The statement caused squeals from the group of three that entered the room only minutes before. "Rachel, I know a few things about not being appreciated for your talent. Hillary Clinton tried to do the same thing to me but I ended up just kicking her little political ass. Santana, I want you to take Rachel to the Cheerios common room and get her a uniform and have it on her with the hour. Next I need you to wax those things she calls eyebrows and bestow upon her the Cheerios ponytail. Oh and can you tell Quinn to come and see me. I would like to have a little chat with her."

"Right away Coach," Santana smirked with happiness "Let's go Berry. It's time for you to fly."


	2. Chapter 2

Rachel could not stop looking at herself in the mirror. For the first time in Rachel's life, she wasn't self conscious. No '_does my hair look good?'_ No_ 'will Finn think I look good?'_ No _'will Quinn stop pointing out of big nose with this outfit?'_ It was as if the Cheerios uniform deflected all of those thoughts about being inferior and stabilized her confidence and she absolutely loved it!

"Let's go Rae. We'll be late to English," said Santana, dragging her out of her thoughts.

Rachel, now known as Rae laughed, "Santana, since when do you want to go to English class. You hate Mr. Bingley and said something along the lines of only needing to know Spanish so you can feed your crack addiction."

Santana pushed open the door from the Cheerios secret common room along side the gym and cracked up with happiness. "Well it's true."

As we made our way towards English class, which was on the other side of the school, everyone moved to the side and let the trio pass. Santana heading out the front with Brittany and Rachel following. To Rachel, it felt amazing. Even though she was following Santana, Rae had never felt better about herself. So many eyes had never been on her without accompanied laughter.

"You know what," said Brittany "Let's ditch."

The three girls passed the choir room and Rachel didn't even glance as New Directions came out.

Rae didn't even notice Finn asking her what she was doing or Quinn stomping her foot in frustration. In fact the only thing Rae had noticed was that Quinn wasn't wearing a Cheerios uniform anymore.

Though she didn't want to admit, it felt as for a minute, that Rachel had finally beaten Quinn, which wasn't true and Rachel knew that. Quinn had the love of her life, and that was something Quinn would never let Rachel ever forget.

And it was something Rachel was going to change, very, _very _soon.

"_What?_" Rachel gasped in reply to Brittany. Rachel had never cut a class before.

"Yeah. In about 5 seconds, the whole school is not only going to know that Rae is a cheerio now and can't be touched but that Quinn isn't a cheerio anymore." replied Santana

"But she can't be called names or have slushies thrown on her. She's still the quarterback's girlfriend."

"And? The point was to knock Quinn off of Coach Sue's pedestal and replace Rachel with it. Plus, we don't have to stay here anymore today because the whole point of going to class was so we could spread the world on Rae, that's done, so now we can leave this idiotic school." Santana sighed, looking at the school from the parking lot, we're the girls now were, "at least for the day."

"But, what are we going to do for the rest of the day?" asked Rae

"Buy you a whole new wardrobe." responded Brittany as she pulled her towards Santana's Escalade.

As she thoughts about it, Rachel didn't mind. She didn't mind having eyes on her, she didn't mind being with Santana and Brittany and she didn't _mind _not being with New Directions.

"RACHEL!" She heard as she went to get in the truck

Santana had appeared out of nowhere and was at her side, Brittany doing the same. "Let me do the talking," whispered Santana as the yellers appeared.

"What do you want, Finn?" Brittany said in distaste. Rachel wondered what had made Brittany angry at Finn. She had never heard Brittany not be kind, to anyone!

"We want to know why Rachel didn't come to glee practice today." said Kurt

"Excuse me lady lips, are you Frankenteen?"

"Hey! Santana, leave 'em alone. We just want to know why our _captain_," hissed Mercedes "missed out on practice. She has never missed one, even when she was practically dying."

"Why do I have to explain it to _you_?" Rachel said with the same disgust Mercedes had "None of you are my friends," Kurt looked like he was going to intervene as well as Finn "No, you do not get to talk. _All of you_ have treated me like the dirt you walk on because I have an opinion, because I have talent and I'm not afraid to tell everyone. All of you brag about something you can do better than everyone else! Mike with dancing, Tina playing the piano, Kurt with fashion, Finn with football, yet_ I'm_ the only one that gets harped on for doing something good with my talent. I didn't come to glee practice because I'm quitting New Directions. My role playing Eponine in Les Mis at the Lima Musical Center as well as Cheerios practice has taken all of my time, and Glee just didn't make the cut," Rachel smiled slyly "Now if you'll excuse me, I have something to do, with my _friends._"

And with that the girls went to get in the truck just before Rachel turned around with one more thing to say, "I once thought that being apart of something special made you special," she looked to Finn "and maybe that's true about other things, but it doesn't matter because what we we're doing, _wasn't_ special."

Rachel got into the truck. Brittany gave her a high five and Santana yelled in spanish for New Directions to move so she could pull out of the school and then we were on our way to row of boutiques and shopping malls that Brittany knew of about an hour away.

"I honestly can't believe I just spent that much money on clothes!" yelled Rachel, who was riding shotgun in Santana's SUV.

"Really Rae? You're like movie star rich and you've never splurged! Not once!"

"No! I never really had anybody to go shopping with so I just bought clothes online." she replied

Santana burst out laughing as she pulled into Bread Stix parking lot, "this explains so much!"

"So tell me," started Rachel "Why I just spent a whole grand on clothes when The Cheerios always wear our uniforms?"

"Parties, the days when Coach Sue is having our uniforms dry cleaned, vacations, when someone needs to be seduced," Santana paused and winked at Rae "oh and did I mention parties."

"No, I don't think you did," joked Rachel as the girls got out of the truck and walked towards the door. It wasn't till Santana and Brittany were already inside and she was halfway through the door did she recognize that all of New Directions cars were there.


End file.
